David
Brott Elected President of Minnesota Hotel & Lodging Association

ST. PAUL, MN, DECEMBER 16, 1997 - David Brott, general manager,
Country Inn & Suites, Bloomington, was elected president of the Minnesota
Hotel & Lodging Association (MH&LA) at the organization's
annual meeting. Brott will assume the presidency on January 1 from William
Morrissey, The Saint Paul Hotel.

Brott's remarks at the annual meeting, which stressed the importance
of teamwork, outlined his goals for the Association in the upcoming year.
He views 1998 as a critical year for the Association. A minimum wage/tip
credit battle at the state legislature last year made a strong impression
in legislators' minds about the strength and unity of the hospitality industry,
Broil said. He stated much time and money was spent creating this impression
and it must be built upon and not allowed to weaken. "If we simply sit
back and wait for the next big issue to come along, we will greatly weaken
the impression we have cultivated. Instead, we need to build our own issues
and use our new-found strength to push these issues through," he said.

As an example, Brott cited the need to encourage legislators to find
a way to keep Minnesota's sporting teams here without taxing our industry
or the taxpayers to do so. Brott said, "Their existence in this market
means too much to the hospitality industry to let them get away.

Brott also stressed helping government officials see the importance
of expanding the Minneapolis Convention
Center. Its expansion would bring in the first tier conventions
currently going to other cities and greatly increase the dollars spent
in the state.

Finally, Brott encouraged all members of the Association to get involved
to make it even more successful. "Each of you can make a valuable contribution
to the Association. We all have great ideas on how the team should be run,"
he said.

Brott has been very active in the Association for many years, sitting
on the Board as Treasurer in 1996 and
Vice President in 1997. He also served as Chair of the Human Resources
Committee in 1 997. Brott's activism in many of the industry's important
causes and his involvement with the national association's Educational
Institute has earned him the respect of his peers.

Born and raised in St. Paul, Brott has worked in the Twin Cities hotel
market for 25 years. His service- and team-oriented management style has
been highly successful. He earned himself the reputation as a turnaround
specialist by taking several properties from the fringe of bankruptcy to
the top ranks of their companies. Additionally, Brott has successfully
opened three hotels from ground zero including his current property in
Bloomington, which opened in May of 1994. The Country Inn & Suites
has 234 rooms and employs 60 people.

The Minnesota Hotel & Lodging Association represents 723 lodging
properties across Minnesota. The MH&LA, along with the Restaurant and
Resort Associations, form Hospitality Minnesota, which represents all segments
of the state's $8.7 billion hospitality industry. The industry is the state's
second largest employer generating more than $300 million in annual sales
tax revenue and providing wages of $3 billion.